This is the perfect classic white cake recipe. Light and fluffy, moist and full of flavor. There is a joke in the cake world that white is not a flavor, it's actually a vanilla cake. But a white cake is not just white. Let's dive into what makes the perfect, best white cake recipe.
Quick Glance at the Recipe: White Cake Recipe
- Recipe Name: White Cake Recipe
- Why You'll Love It: Soft, fluffy white cake with a delicate crumb and bright white color that's perfect for decorating.
- Time and Difficulty: 15 minutes - Intermediate difficulty
- Main Ingredients: All-purpose flour, egg whites, butter, sugar, milk, baking powder
- Method: Traditional creaming method with egg whites added to whipped butter and sugar.
- Texture and Flavor: Light, tender crumb with a subtle vanilla flavor and moist interior.
- Quick Tip: Wrap the cakes while still warm and flash chill them to lock in moisture.
Jump to:
- Quick Glance at the Recipe: White Cake Recipe
- My Experience With White Cake
- White Cake Ingredients
- What Makes A White Cake?
- How To Make A White Cake Step-By-Step
- How to Make Easy Buttercream Step-By-Step
- Cake Batter and Frosting Calculator
- Cups of Batter Needed
- Cups of Frosting Needed
- Watch: How To Decorate A Cake Step-by-Step
- Recipe
My Experience With White Cake
There's a running joke in the cake world that "white isn't a flavor." People say it's just vanilla cake without the yolks.
But professional bakers know that white cake really is its own thing.
By removing the egg yolks and using only egg whites, the cake becomes lighter in color and slightly more delicate in flavor. It also produces that bright white crumb that's perfect for wedding cakes and elegant layer cakes.
White cake, vanilla cake, and yellow cake are all closely related recipes, but the way the eggs are used changes the texture, flavor, and color.
This cake pairs beautifully with white chocolate ganache as a frosting - the vanilla flavor of the ganache complements the delicate crumb of the cake perfectly.
White Cake Ingredients
This recipe uses traditional baking ingredients you probably already have in your pantry.
All-purpose flour - Provides structure for the cake. I prefer all-purpose flour here because it gives the cake a slightly stronger crumb that holds up well for layered cakes. If you prefer cake flour, check out my white velvet cake recipe.
Egg whites - Egg whites keep the cake bright white while still adding structure and moisture. You can use fresh egg whites or pasteurized egg whites.
Granulated sugar - Sugar sweetens the cake and helps create a light, fluffy texture when whipped with the butter.
Unsalted butter - Butter adds flavor and richness to the cake. Make sure it's soft so it creams properly with the sugar. If you brown the butter you can make a delicious brown butter cake.
Milk - Milk adds moisture and helps create a soft crumb.
Vegetable oil - Oil keeps the cake moist even after refrigeration.
Baking powder - This gives the cake its lift and light texture.
Salt - Salt balances the sweetness and enhances the overall flavor.
Vanilla extract or clear vanilla - Vanilla adds flavor. Clear vanilla can be used if you want to keep the cake extra white.
What Makes A White Cake?
Many people confuse white cake, vanilla cake, and yellow cake, but the difference mostly comes down to how the eggs are used.
- White Cake uses only egg whites, which keeps the crumb bright white and gives the cake a delicate texture.
- Vanilla cake uses whole eggs, which results in a slightly off-white color and a richer flavor.
- Yellow cake uses egg yolks, which give the cake a deep golden color and a richer, more custardy flavor. Again, people laugh and say that "white" and "yellow" is not a flavor but making an order for "all egg yolk cake" just does not have the same ring to it. It's just a way of describing the cake so we all are on the same page.
White cake and vanilla cake are both commonly used as base recipes for flavored cakes, while yellow cake is traditionally paired with chocolate frosting or chocolate ganache.
The names might sound simple, but they're just shorthand so bakers know exactly what type of cake they're working with.
How To Make A White Cake Step-By-Step
Remember to always bring your cold ingredients to room temperature and use a kitchen scale to measure your ingredients. I use "ounces" for my measurements because it's easier to mis en place everything out. If you prefer metric, you can switch the measurements on the recipe card below.
- Preheat your oven to 335ºF (168ºC) and prepare two 8" x 2" cake pans with cake goop or your preferred pan release.
- Combine the warm milk, oil, and extracts, and set them aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together: flour, baking powder, and the salt and set it aside.
- Place the soft butter into the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until smooth.
While mixing on low, Sprinkle in your sugar, and then let it whip on high until light and white (about 5 minutes) until lightened in color and very fluffy.
- While mixing on low, add the egg whites one at a time (roughly) to the butter mixture and let them fully combine after each addition before adding the next. If your egg whites aren't at room temperature, you can microwave them for a few seconds. Be careful not to cook them! Cold egg whites will curdle the batter.
Mix until smooth.
- Add ⅓ of your dry ingredients to the egg/butter mixture and mix on low until just combined.
Then add in ½ of your liquids, then dry, then liquids, and the rest of your dry.
Let mix until they are just combined.
- Add the batter into prepared cake pans and bake them at 335º F for 25-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when poked in the center.
- Let the cakes cool for fifteen minutes, then turn out the cakes onto a cooling rack. Wrap the cakes while they are still warm and place them into the freezer to flash chill. This locks in the moisture. Once the cakes are cool but not frozen, you can then trim off the brown edges of your cakes and frost them as desired.
How to Make Easy Buttercream Step-By-Step
- Combine pasteurized egg whites and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip the mixture on medium speed until it becomes thick and glossy.
This creates the base for the easy buttercream.
- Begin adding softened butter one piece at a time while mixing on medium speed.
At first, the mixture may look curdled or separated. This is completely normal.
- Mix in the vanilla extract and salt. Then whip on high until light, fluffy, and no longer tastes like butter.
- Optional: Switch to the paddle attachment. Mix the easy buttercream on low for several minutes to remove air bubbles and achieve the smoothest possible texture.
Cake Batter and Frosting Calculator
Select an option below to calculate how much batter or frosting you need. Adjust the servings slider on the recipe card to change the amounts the recipe makes.
Choose a pan type
Choose a cake pan size
(based on 2" tall cake pan)
Choose a cake pan size
(based on 2" tall cake pan)
Cupcake Tin Size
Choose number of pans
Cups of Batter Needed
8 cups
Cups of Frosting Needed
5 cups
Note: measurements are estimated based off the vanilla cake recipe using standard US cake pans and sizes. Measurements used are for 2" tall cake pans only. Your results may vary. Do not overfill cake pans above manufacturer's recommended guidelines.
Watch: How To Decorate A Cake Step-by-Step
Before you start decorating, watch the video below where I show you every step of decorating a cake from start to finish. Seeing the process in action makes it much easier to follow along
- Liz Marek.
Recipe
Ingredients
White Cake Recipe Ingredients
- 10 oz milk room temp
- 2 oz vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract use clear for a whiter cake
- 14 oz AP flour
- 2 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 8 oz unsalted butter room temp
- 14 oz sugar
- 6 large egg whites fresh not boxed at room temp
Easy Buttercream Frosting
- 8 oz pasteurized egg whites room temperature
- 32 oz powdered sugar
- 32 oz unsalted butter room temperature
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Instructions
White Cake Recipe Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 335ºF and prepare two 8"x2" cake pans with cake goop or another preferred pan release.
- Combine milk, oil and extracts and set aside
- Combine your flour, baking powder and salt and set aside
- Place butter in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment and cream until smooth. Sprinkle in your sugar and then let whip on high until light and white (about 5 minutes)
- Add the egg whites one at a time (roughly) to the butter mixture while mixing on low and let fully combine after each addition before adding the next. If your egg whites aren't at room temperature you can microwave them for a few seconds. Be careful not to cook them! Cold egg whites will curdle the batter.
- Add in ⅓ of your dry ingredients to the egg/butter mixture and mix on low until just combined. Then add in ½ of your liquids, then dry, then liquids and the rest of your dry. Let mix until just combined.
- Add batter into prepared cake pans and bake at 335º F for 25-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when poked in the center.
- Let cool ten minutes then turn out cakes onto a cooling rack. Wrap warm and place into the freezer to flash chill. This locks in the moisture. Once cool but not frozen you can then trim off the brown edges of your cakes and frost as desired. Chill cake.
Easy Buttercream Frosting
- Combine egg whites and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl with the whisk attachment. Whisk to combine on low then whisk on high, adding in your butter in small chunks, vanilla and salt. Turn mixer up to high and whip until light, fluffy and white.
Gold Drip
- Melt chocolate and water in the microwave and whisk until smooth. Add in a couple drops of food coloring. Let cool to about 90 degrees before attempting to drip over the chilled cake. Once chocolate is set, you can combine the everclear and gold dust to make a paint and paint the drip.
*note: this is a non-toxic gold dust
LUCILLE says
When reading your article it starts you use sour cream in the recipe. When watching the video and reading recipe it doesn't show sour cream. I'm confused.
The Sugar Geek Show says
Just extra information 🙂 The blog post goes over a lot of frequently asked questions and many people ask me if you have to put sour cream in white cake and the answer is no but some recipes do
Cristiana says
Hello, from Romania. I made this cake today, for my son's 6 month anniversary ?. It was my first, but definitely not last white cake. My husband ate one piece and asked for another one, which NEVER happens. Thank you so much for this recipe! ☺?
Sarah says
Hie
Big fan of your blog and recipes
My question is can the stand mixer process part in your vanilla cake recipes be replaced with aN electric hand mixer? Or can a food processor be used for this process
If yes, which is better how much would be the time variation and would the result be same? Thank you
The Sugar Geek Show says
Im sure you could use a hand mixer but I couldn't begin to give you time measurements. It would just depend on your mixer. I would just start with the times listed in the original recipe.
JOHN LANE says
Would I be able to split the layers for chantilly or is it too delicate? Looking for a nice white moist to be able to do 3 or 4 thinner layers. I assume it would be best to refrigerate or even freeze before splitting??
The Sugar Geek Show says
Yes you can
Eva says
Can you replace the granulated sugar for powdered sugar?
The Sugar Geek Show says
I don't think the butter and sugar would cream the same way if you used powdered
Devin says
Would you be able to substitute the milk out for coffee?
The Sugar Geek Show says
I dont see why not
clare says
Hi want to try this cake recipe is the flour self raising? And what kind of suger is it I am in the uk. Thank you
The Sugar Geek Show says
The flour is not self rising. It's soft flour. Look for Shipton mill soft cake and pastry flour on UK amazon. The sugar is white granulated sugar. Not powdered
Carrie says
Hi, I have been looking for a good moist flavorful white cake for years and this cake sounds just wonderful, will it fit in a 9+13 inch glass pan as well? Also will a regular hand mixer work just as good? Thank You!
The Sugar Geek Show says
Yes it sure will! A hand mixer can work, just make sure you're mixing enough
Natasha Rowden says
I made this white cake for a baby shower a few months ago, and it was fabulous. Moist, flavorful, great texture; It got lots of compliments! I'd like to adapt it to make a marble cake for an upcoming bridal shower. Any suggestions on how to do that? Thank you!
The Sugar Geek Show says
I would make a half batch of easy chocolate cake and swirl that into the white cake
Giovanna Perot-Averill says
hello
can this cake be covered in fondant instead of buttercream and then have the gold applied, or if the fondant too heavy a cover?
thanks!
The Sugar Geek Show says
Yes you can cover this cake in buttercream and then fondant
Ina Labuschagne says
Hi, I have to me a rainbow cake. In the past the colours does not came out right (any colour mixed with egg yolk obviously changed - eg. yellow mixed with blue makes green). I was then advice to make a white cake. I will definately try your recipe. I just have 1 question though. The butter is also a yellow colour ?- is this not making it yellow again.
The Sugar Geek Show says
The butter isn't yellow enough to affect the color like egg yolks do.
Jehn says
Your recipe says bake at 335 for 25-35 minutes, bit the video shows 300 for 12 minutes.
The Sugar Geek Show says
I dont know how I haven't noticed that typo in the video until now. That's wayyyy off. I'll have to fix the video an re-upload. Thanks for letting me know.
Patti says
Sounds like a wonderful cake! Would this recipe work for a bundt cake? Thanks!
The Sugar Geek Show says
It probably would but I also have a vanilla bundt cake recipe that works great
Emma says
I made the frosting… its seems a bit clumpy. I followed the recipe to a T. Could the mixture just be too warm?
The Sugar Geek Show says
If the buttercream is still lumpy it's not done whipping. It needs to whip until it's creamy and fluffy. Depending on how cold your butter is, this could take some time
Stephanie says
I want to make a coconut cake from this recipe. I’ll use coconut extract, but how do you think canned coconut milk will do in place of the regular milk? It’s very high in fat. Also I need this to make 2 10-inch layers. Would I just need a double batch?
The Sugar Geek Show says
You could definitely use coconut milk in place of regular milk. I've done it before with success. I would double the recipe for two 10" cakes